Characters / Mortal Kombat – Liu Kang

Mortal Kombat Main Character Index
Original and Reboot Timeline: MK (1992) | MK2 | MK3 | MK4 | Deadly Alliance | Deception | Armageddon | MK vs. DC Universe | MK9 | MKX | MK11
The New Era: MK1
Spinoffs: Mythologies: Sub-Zero | Special Forces
Non-video game: The Movie | Conquest | Defenders of the Realm | 2021 Movie
Individual Characters: Scorpion I (Hanzo Hasashi) | Sub-Zero I/Noob Saibot (Bi-Han) | Johnny Cage | Liu Kang | Raiden | Shang Tsung | Sub-Zero II/Scorpion II (Kuai Liang) | Kitana | Mileena | Shao Kahn/General Shao | Quan Chi

---

Spoilers for 11 will be unmarked.

---

Liu Kang

"It is my duty to serve Earthrealm."

Debut game: Mortal Kombat (1992) (Ho Sung Pak)

Other appearances: Mortal Kombat II (Ho Sung Pak), Mortal Kombat 3 (Eddie Wong), Mortal Kombat 4 (Joshua Y. Tsui), Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance (cameo), Mortal Kombat: Deception, Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks, Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe (Tom Choi), Mortal Kombat 9 (Tom Choi), Mortal Kombat X (Tom Choi, English; Óscar Flores, Latin American Spanish), Mortal Kombat 11 (Matthew Yang King, English; Óscar Flores, Latin American Spanish; Youngtax Lee, face model), Mortal Kombat 1 (Matthew Yang King, English; Óscar Flores, Latin American Spanish, Youngtax Lee, face model)

Non-game appearances: Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins (Randy Hamilton; Jorge Roig Jr., Latin American Spanish) Mortal Kombat: The Movie/Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (Robin Shou; Jorge Roig Jr. and Alfonso Ramírez, Latin American Spanish), Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm (Brian Tochi; Humberto Solórzano, Latin American Spanish), Mortal Kombat: Legacy (Brian Tee), Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge (Jordan Rodrigues; Sebastián Castro Saavedra, Latin American Spanish), Mortal Kombat (2021) (Ludi Lin; José Ángel Torres, Latin American Spanish), Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms (Jordan Rodrigues; Sebastián Castro Saavedra, Latin American Spanish)

Known as "The Immortal Champion of Mortal Kombat," Liu Kang is one of the best warriors of Earthrealm, and has beaten many powerful foes to prove his valor. Throughout the years, Liu Kang has been portrayed as the main hero of the series, becoming champion after the events of the first game.

Coming home from Shang's Island after defeating both Goro and the sorcerer, he found many of his fellow Shaolin monks killed in a vicious attack by a Tarkatan horde. Enraged, Liu Kang decided to travel to Outworld alongside Raiden and the other Earthrealm warriors. At the Outworld tournament he met Kitana, and began to fall in love with her. Kang eventually fought Shao Kahn, overpowering the emperor. Shortly after, during the events of Mortal Kombat 3, he found himself the primary target of Kahn's extermination squads. Kung Lao, who went against Shao Kahn, was nearly killed by a powerful spell. An enraged Liu Kang challenged the emperor, and after the final battle, he defeated Shao Kahn again, forcing him and his forces to retreat back to Outworld.

Years later, upon learning that Kitana's home realm of Edenia had been captured by the fallen Elder God Shinnok, he set out on his own to save her, but he was unsuccessful. Liu Kang returned to Earth, where he began gathering Earth's warriors to save the realm and assist his mentor, Raiden. Eventually, Liu Kang confronted Shinnok and emerged victorious, effectively ending his occupation of Edenia. Liu Kang returned to the Shaolin Temples, believing he has lost Kitana forever. However, the Edenian Princess appeared through a portal from Edenia and thanked Liu Kang for all he had done. She offered him a chance to join her at the throne of Edenia. However, due to the responsibilities as a Mortal Kombat Champion, Liu Kang was forced to decline her offer.

Liu Kang went on to enjoy relative peace for many years afterward. However, the Deadly Alliance would make itself known on Earth by its successful assassination of Liu Kang. His mutilated body was discovered by Kung Lao, and he was laid to rest at the Wu Shi Academy, where a shrine was built to honor the former champion. His rest was short however, as a corrupted Raiden restored the monk as a living corpse, which went on a rampage and proceeded to slaughter many of Liu Kang's fellow Shaolin monks. Liu Kang's spirit was not technically responsible, but he could not help but feel responsible for the actions perpetrated by his corpse. Eventually, he defeated his body, stopping it from doing further harm.

In the Soft Reboot of Mortal Kombat 9, Liu Kang once again is Raiden's chosen champion to participate in the Mortal Kombat tournament. However Raiden's visions of the previous timeline slowly begin to send Liu Kang down a much different path as the game progresses, culminating in his accidental death at Raiden's hands.

During Mortal Kombat X, he serves Quan Chi and Shinnok as a revenant, alongside the other characters slain during 9. His mind twisted by the Netherrealm's evil, Liu Kang blames Raiden for his demise and gladly aids Shinnok in attacking Earthrealm. After Shinnok's defeat and Quan Chi's death, Liu Kang and Kitana become the new rulers of the Netherrealm.

In Mortal Kombat 11, when Kronika distorts time and merges past and present, past versions of Liu Kang and other heroes from the events of II (in the timeline created in 9) are drawn forward to join the heroes of the present. Meanwhile, Liu Kang's revenant self is recruited by Kronika, who promises him that Raiden will not exist in the New Era.

In Mortal Kombat 1, since eons past, Lord Liu Kang, God of Fire, has been a steadfast protector of Earthrealm after relinquishing his role as Keeper of Time, fostering the relationship between his realm and Outworld by the means of a generational tournament in order to prevent escalations. He has chosen many champions and continues to maintain peace, but recently, something goes against the divine plan set by him. Rumors of sorcerers Shang Tsung and Quan Chi gaining power are not the news he would like to hear, so he prepares to act decisively in the face of a coming catastrophe.

---

Liu Kang (Human)

• The Ace: He's the Mortal Kombat Champion of Earthrealm, but the events of MK9 and MKX have made him a Broken Ace. His still-living self from midway through MK9 remains an ace when pulled into the future timeline in MK11, however.
• A Day in the Limelight:
  • In MK vs. DCU, he's the focus of MK side's first chapter.
  • In Mortal Kombat 9, he's the focus of Chapter 5.
  • In Mortal Kombat 11, he's the focus of Chapter 3, along with Kung Lao and Chapter 12 as a Fire God.
• The Ageless: As the Eternal Champion of Mortal Kombat. Since the tournament is apparently defunct in Mortal Kombat X, he is now seemingly mortal and aging non-canonically; his revenant form shows no signs of age.
• Amazon Chaser: Kang certainly seems to think so of Kitana, given his impressed reaction to her fighting skills in 9.
• Ambiguously Related: Whether or not Liu Kang is a descendant of the Great Kung Lao is a source of much confusion and debate. The first depiction of him being a descendant of the Great Kung Lao was in the first movie where Kang was a Composite Character of himself and his friend and fellow shaolin monk from the games, Kung Lao, the namesake and descendant of the Great Kung Lao in the games. Goro's bio in Mortal Kombat 4 states that Liu Kang is indeed a descendant^note mistakenly called an "ancestor" in the text. of the Great Kung Lao. However, this relationship is never mentioned in the games' stories nor do any of Kang's endings and bios mention him and Kung Lao being cousins with Kung Lao's connection to the Great Kung Lao being the only one that is ever even acknowledged.
• And This Is for...: In 9 right before he "kills" Shao Kahn.
  Liu Kang: For Kung Lao, the Shaolin... and Earthrealm!
• Animal Motifs: Dragons, befitting his Bruce Lee resemblance as well as his transformations. He also resembles a young Ricky Steamboat, a pro wrestler who's Red Baron is "The Dragon".
  • Animal-Themed Fighting Style: He uses Dragon and Monkey Kung Fu in Shaolin Monks.
• Anvil on Head: In one of his fatalities in MK3 and the DC crossover, a Mortal Kombat arcade cabinet drops and crushes his opponent. It comes back in 11 as a Brutality.
• Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: Certainly gives off shades of this in MKX, if his interaction dialogue is anything to go by. The fact that he is a revenant in MKX may account for why he is arrogant and self-centered; it allows him to show off the anger he harbors towards Raiden after the events of MK 9. Human Liu Kang in 11 is considerably more grounded and modest.
• The Artifact: To an extent. He was originally designed as the hero of the series and the Champion of Mortal Kombat. With the tournament having less relevance in the series, his role has been diminished in favor of other characters. In 11, he regains his role as primary protagonist alongside Raiden.
• As Long as It Sounds Foreign: "Liu" is a common Chinese surname and is typically not used as a given name. The order of Liu Kang's name would seem to follow Eastern naming convention, in which the family name comes before the given name, but all characters address Liu Kang as "Liu," treating "Liu" as his first name; even his own brother Chan does so in the movie. If it actually did follow Eastern naming convention, Liu Kang's brother would have been named Liu Chow (comics) or Liu Chan (movie), instead of Chow Kang or Chan Kang.
• Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence: In his MK11 Arcade ending, he uses the Sands of Time to turn his friends and himself into Elder Gods so they can protect the realms. Unfortunately, Liu Kang finds no joy in godhood, as his new heavenly duties prevent him from having the simple and happy life he hoped to share with Kitana. He can only express hope that in the next timeline, he and Kitana can find happiness together.
• The Atoner: As he sees his Bad Future, his past self is willingly to atone his future of succumbing into Quan Chi and Shinnok's revenants, fixing the estranged cycle with Raiden and prevent an Armageddon.
• Badass Boast:
  Liu Kang: Kotal Kahn
  Kotal Kahn: You will fail against Outworld's best!
  Liu Kang: Goro, Shang Tsung or Shao Kahn?
• Bad Liar: Like Kitana, he repeatedly denies that there's anything going on between them when any of their friends ask them about it. Except he's terrible at lying, unlike Kitana who can deny it with a perfectly straight face.
  Cassie Cage: "Getting awfully cuddly with Kitana."
  Liu Kang: (blushing) "I, uh, don't know what you mean."
• Bare-Fisted Monk: For the most part. He does use a sword in 4 and nunchuks in 11.
• Bash Brothers: With Kung Lao. Especially in Shaolin Monks.
• Battle Couple: With Kitana. First as the new rulers of the Netherrealm in the second timeline, and later as Watchers at the Golden Ending of 11.
• Big Brother Instinct: Towards all Shaolin. The easiest way to earn his enmity is to hurt his Shaolin brethren. Shao Kahn earns a flaming fist to the chest for killing Kung Lao and Kronika earns his hatred when she has Geras and the Revenants slaughter the Shaolin inside the Wu Shi Academy.
• Broken Ace:
  • Becomes more prominent as the series goes on. He may be the Mortal Kombat Champion and protector of Earthrealm, but this also means putting the greater good before his own desires (notably, rejecting Kitana's offer to rule Edenia). Getting murdered by Shang Tsung causes his vengeful zombie to kill many of his own allies, an act he still feels responsible for. By MK9, he he loses most of his friends and allies over the course of the game including Kitana, loses faith in his mentor, and in his mind essentially leaves Earthrealm defenseless. In Legacy, he also becomes so disillusioned that he ends up working for Shang Tsung. And by the end of X, he's now in charge of the Netherrealm, though it's unclear if he and Kitana have lost their sense of morality now that they're free of Quan Chi's influence.
  • Liu Kang's new character arc seems to focus on the humanity aspect of his life instead of portraying him as the do-gooder Shaolin monk of the original timeline. Prior to the reboots, it seemed that we knew nothing much of Liu Kang outside of him being a master martial artist. The reboots desire to examine how much of a toll it's taken on him to constantly sacrifice his personal desires to do the right thing in a world bigger and crueler than the shaolin temples. Shades of him embracing more human desires/vices such as a relationship in Mortal Kombat Legacy; crueler ambitions such as personal conquest (MK9) and domination (MKX) are now coming out more and more now that he's no longer interested in doing the purely just ideals. While the relationship and possible crimes in Legacy are embracing human desires, his cruel ambitions and mean streak are also indicative of a man who has completely lost his faith. Who knows now if he's going to get it back or if he's not going to embrace a new faith. Losing a lot of said faith in Raiden hasn't helped matters much.
• Brought Down to Badass: In MKX, the non-canon human form of Liu Kang is no longer The Ageless, due to both the title of Eternal Champion of Mortal Kombat and the tournament itself being defunct. Still, he's gotten no less capable 25~ years later.
• Bruce Lee Clone: He even had his own in-games vocals when the other men all had the same. It's most prominent in the first game, with Lee's trademark bare-chestedness and black pants. He even ends up wielding nunchaku like Lee in MK11.
• Came Back Wrong: In the original timeline, his corpse was turning into a killing machine by a fallen Raiden. In the new timeline, he's one of Quan Chi's undead revenants instead, and he doesn't get better by the game's end. Either of them.
• Character Catchphrase: "Face me in Mortal Kombat!" Lampshaded by Kung Jin and Shinnok in their interaction dialogues.
• Celibate Hero: He passed up on Kitana's offer of ruling Edenia with her after MK4, because of his status as the Champion of Earthrealm. Being a Shaolin monk might have have contributed. Not so much in the rebooted timeline though, especially in the Golden Ending for 11.
• The Champion: For Raiden.
  • This is especially the case in the original timeline.
  • In the rebooted timeline, he starts off as this, but his Revenant self doesn't consider it so much of an honor anymore after the events of 9. After his death, he is eventually replaced by Johnny Cage of all people.
• The Chosen One: Earlier games played this completely straight, with the devs even referring to Liu Kang as their "Luke Skywalker", The Hero who was chosen by destiny to defend the Earth against those who threatened it. Later games, however, began exploring the concept in more detail, eventually indicating that he is Raiden's Chosen One alone, and that no other god or realm is beholden to accepting that title. For example, Nightwolf is the Chosen One for his own god, the Great Spirit. Some even mock it or consider Raiden to be too much of a fool to be a reliable judge. For his part, Liu Kang doesn't really care if he's "chosen"—he will fight for honor and justice regardless, and he has the skill to back up his bravado. Ironically, this helps reinforce to others that perhaps he is worthy of the title. In 11 Kronika then confirms Liu Kang's cosmic importance by stating that his partnership with Raiden is the only threat she's faced to her power in the countless eons she's done her work.
• Covered with Scars: His human body was completely covered by severe burns after he was mortally wounded by Raiden (albeit by accident) at the end of 9.
• Deadpan Snarker: Of the Brutal Honesty variety. He's not above pointing out a character's flaws or engaging in some witty banter in some of his intro interactions in X and 11 (mostly 11, as himself in X is more of a Jerkass What If?, as seen in the Revenant section).
  Liu Kang: Master Li Bing saw your potential.
  Kung Lao: Is that why he made life hell?
  Liu Kang: That was because you are lazy.
  
  Shao Kahn: Raiden chooses champions poorly.
  Liu Kang: This from the man who chose Mileena?
  Shao Kahn: Do not mock my daughter!
• Decoy Protagonist: Due to how closely 9 follows the first three MK games, both his chapter and his fight with Shao Kahn following Kung Lao's death establish him as the big champion among the heroes. However, his Faith–Heel Turn and eventual death reveal the story's protagonist to be not him, but Raiden.
• Despair Event Horizon: All of his friends save for Cage and Sonya die, he finds his faith in Raiden completely shattered, and dies a horrible death when he attacks the latter out of rage. Eventually, he mellows out after Shinnok's second defeat in the end of Mortal Kombat X when Dark Raiden tosses the evil god's head to him and Kitana.
• Dragons Up the Yin Yang: One of his fatalities in MKII, in which he turns into a Chinese Dragon and consumes the upper body of his opponent. This fatality was turned into an Animality in MK3, back into a normal fatality in MK4 and MK9, and became part of his Fatal Blow in MK11.
• Drunk with Power: In Shang Tsung's Arcade Ending in 9, he becomes this after successfully usurping Raiden's place as Protector of Earthrealm, and turning into a power-mad tyrant.
• Earn Your Happy Ending: If Liu Kang defeats Kronika before she can go back to the Dawn of Time, then Liu Kang will be close enough to the timeline of the current events to go forward and retrieve Kitana, allowing him to go back to the Dawn of Time with the love of his life and both being able to reshape the future together.
• Empowered Badass Normal: Liu Kang isn't a sorcerer or god, his power comes from being a really, really good fighter. His Shaolin Training gave him the ability to manipulate his own chi in the form of fireballs.
• Eternal Recurrence: No matter what timeline, whether it be at the gates of Armageddon or fending off a threat to all the realms, Liu Kang and Raiden are destined to fight each other over ideological differences, and Liu Kang will always perish and fall to evil. This was due to Kronika's constant interference to ensure that she could not be threatened by them with their powers combined, and it was only Raiden realizing this in 11 and willingly sacrificing his power to unite himself, Liu Kang's past self, and his current revenant body to make the Fire God Liu Kang that the cycle was finally broken.
• Evil Me Scares Me: In 11, his past self is utterly disgusted by what he's become and refuses to listen to his revenant self when he keeps denouncing Raiden, vowing to never become him.
• Expy: On his best days, Liu Kang is a fairly straightforward expy of Ryu, with both being Martial Pacifists, fairly genial towards everyone, and wearing a red Martial Arts Headband. On his worst days, Liu Kang becomes a Corrupted Character Copy, embracing the corruptive power of godhood or the Netherrealm in contrast to Ryu rejecting the Satsui no Hado. Also served as one to Shang-Chi, being a martiat artist who wears a red headband and using his fire dragon powers in battle.
• Face–Heel Turn: After the events of Mortal Kombat 9, he becomes a revenant in MKX and is actually appreciating his new status as one.
• Fallen Hero: Kang must have taken notes from Jin Kazama, as he is this in Legacy and in X.
• Faith–Heel Turn:
  • He does this in 9, when he starts to believe that Raiden's visions are turning him insane. This culminates with Liu Kang completely turning against him and the Elder Gods, when Raiden tells Liu Kang that the Big Bad must be allowed to win. Even after he Came Back Wrong as a revenant, he still harbored a big grudge against his former mentor.
  • In Arcade Mode, he does this again in a much more substantial fashion, upending Raiden as the protector of Earthrealm, and becoming a Drunk with Power tyrant.
• Famous Ancestor: Like his friend Kung Lao, Liu Kang is also descended from The Great Kung Lao. This technically makes them distant cousins.
• Foil:
  • To his good buddy Kung Lao. Kang is an orphan who, depending on the story, is either of unknown background or comes from a lower branch of the same family as Kung Lao, both being descended from "the Great" Kung Lao. Also, Kang was a dedicated pupil while Lao was a bit of a slacker.
  • To Cassie Cage. Both are labeled as The Chosen One, Liu Kang as Mortal Kombat's champion and Cassie for beating Shinnok and surprisingly, both would rather have a simple life but are more than willing to step up when Earthrealm needs them. Liu Kang is an orphan who was raised by the Shaolin, gained all his abilities through training, and is very respectful; while Cassie grew up with a family, uses military training with powers inherited from her father, and makes wisecracks on everyone.
• Friendly Rivalry: It is more visible in X, but he seems to have one with Kung Lao. It helps that the latter is portrayed sometimes as being jealous of Kang's skills.
• Future Me Scares Me: The past version of Kang has this opinion of himself.
  Liu Kang: "How did I get so deluded?"
• Funny Bruce Lee Noises: More subdued in recent games, but it is a quite infamous trait of his. In MKX, he does not use these noises whenever the player uses the Revenant or Dark Emperor costumes in multiplayer or ladder matches; instead, these noises are replaced by normal octave shouts, grunts and yells.
• Go and Sin No More: After defeating Kitana in Chapter 5 of 9, he spares her life and convinces her subtly to change her ways.
• Godhood Seeker: In his arcade ending in 9 has him overthrow Raiden and becomes a god and the protector of Earthrealm, however in Shang Tsung’s ending he loses his sanity and becomes a tyrant. In 11, he canonically becomes a god via Raiden transferring his powers to his revenant self and merging both him and his revenant self into one, but unlink his arcade ending in 9, he doesn’t lose his sanity and becomes the Big Good.
• Gratuitous Disco Sequence: In his Friendships from MKII and MK11, a disco ball comes down from the top of the screen as he starts to dance.
• The Hero: He is the main hero of the series. However, with the exception of Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks and the movies, he's not the main focus. Canonically, he is the one who defeats the main villains of the first four games, cementing his status as Champion. Until Deadly Alliance, where he is tragically killed and causes his soul and body to wander separately as other characters try to fill the void his death has caused. Even more so in the reboot timeline, where he becomes a Fallen Hero. He finally regains his heroic status in MK11.
• Heroic Build: Liu Kang has a sculpted physique that's almost always visible due to being shirtless most of the time.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Kung Lao.
• High-Voltage Death: Liu Kang attacked Raiden out of rage near the end of 9. Raiden accidentally fries him to death and tries to apologize, but even in his dying breath, Liu Kang blames him for his failures.
• Humble Hero: Despite having accomplished so much as Earthrealm's champion, Liu Kang never lets any of his achievements get to his head and remains a modest and respectful man. Many characters often praise him for this as it makes him preferable to more arrogant and egotistical heroes like Johnny Cage and Kung Lao.
• Ideal Hero: His original characterization was essentially this; he was the only competitor in the first game to fight purely to restore the tournament's honor, the Mortal Kombat champion who always saved the world, and admittedly not a whole lot else. The reboot timeline gives him considerably more depth and flaws.
• Impossible Shadow Puppets: His MK3's Friendship has Liu Kang using his fingers to make a shadow puppet of the MK dragon.
• Invincible Hero: He is the least complicated character in the franchise story-wise, and he was the in-story winner of the first four games. And then averted in both Deadly Alliance and 9.
• In Spite of a Nail: In three timelines, he dies and becomes revived as something inhuman. A zombie in the original and a revenant in the current one. And again in 11, after getting his soul sucked out by his future revenant, Raiden manages to revive him into a god by giving him his powers.
• Interspecies Romance: He's a human who becomes smitten with Kitana, an Edenian.
• Irony:
  • Refused Kitana's offer to rule Edenia by her side in the original timeline. In MKX, both he and Kitana rule the Netherrealm.
  • In his ending in 9, being fed up with Raiden, he appeals to the Elder Gods to remove Raiden so he can take his place. In 11, he takes his place after Raiden willingly give his powers to him, turning Kang into a thunder god and the protector of time and realms after defeating Kronika.
  • In the story mode for 9, he meets his end when attempting to attack Raiden with his fire, and Raiden's electric counter attack not only electrocuted him but caused his fire to backlash, frying him as well. In the story mode for 11, he ends up with the combined power of his fire and Raiden's thunder, wielding both with no consequences and an incredble boost in power to be the sole vanguard.
• It's Personal: After seeing the aftermath of the Netherrealm's slaughter of the Wu Shi, he declares that they will pay for this act.
• Jack of All Stats: As the series' overall protagonist, he's designed as the most accessible character. He has two variations of his fireball which can hit either high or low to force different approaches, and his flying and bicycle kicks are great tools for approaching and combos, with later games providing refinements to these moves while also giving him a few new tricks to further flesh out his move list. Despite his well-roundedness, he is not a Shoto Clone as he lacks a Shoryuken equivalent.
• Late-Arrival Spoiler: If you plan to play Deception or Armageddon (or even 9, considering what the intro shows), bear in mind that he got killed at the beginning of Deadly Alliance and Came Back Wrong as a zombie.
• Lightning Bruiser: In 9, he's the second-fastest character in the game behind Kabal.
• Locked into Strangeness: A beign version: Liu Kang becomes a Thunder God in Raiden's place, and thus, his hair becomes permanently white.
• Long-Haired Pretty Boy: MK3 and on.
• Martial Arts Headband: Liu Kang wears a red one starting from MKII on.
• Martial Pacifist: Before MKII. He is brutal (his punches still produce blood like any other character), but his Fatality in the first game did not explicitly kill his opponent.
• Meaningful Name:
  • The characters that make up his name (刘康) can mean "to kill (刘)" and "peaceful (康)". Liu Kang is a Nice Guy and the Chosen One, meant to destroy any threats to Earthrealm.
  • In a meta sense, Liu Kang sounds like "Luke" (as in Luke Skywalker), one of the inspirations for his character as the hero of the series.
• Mirror Match:
  • At the end of his Arcade ending in Deception, Liu Kang has to fight his undead body, but canonically fails to retrieve it.
  • Happens again in Chapter 3 of 11 as the younger and still-living Liu Kang is shown fighting against his revenant self.
• Mr. Fanservice: Most of his outfits are shirtless. And also he wears a very tight tank top in 4.
• My Kung-Fu Is Stronger Than Yours: One of his pre-match dialogues against Kung Lao in MKX.
  Liu Kang: "Shaolin Wushu has no equal!"
  Kung Lao: "Kung Lun Chuang is far superior!"
  Liu Kang: "Your arrogance is matched only by your ignorance!"
• Nice Guy: Liu Kang is very mellow and calm towards his friends and allies. Justified that he is a dedicated and courageous fighting monk and shows faith in the Shaolin way. Played Straight in 11, as stated from many of his pre-match dialogues and his past self in Story Mode.
• Not Himself: In 11, the increased jerkass-ness Kang had exhibited since Deception is implied to be the manipulations of Kronika. The past Liu Kang from a different timeline professes that he would never go down the same path.
• Not So Above It All: While he makes his opinion of Johnny Cage known, there is an interaction in 11 where he at least humors him:
  Johnny Cage: Shadow kick beats flying kick.
  Liu Kang: Bicycle kick beats shadow kick.
  Johnny Cage: But a nut punch wins the day!
• Older Than They Look: In MKX, 25 years after Shinnok's defeat, aside his graying hair, he still looks quite young. That said, his human depiction in the game is non-canon, for Liu Kang remains a revenant at this point.
• Our Hero Is Dead:
  • The very instant Shang Tsung and Quan Chi got the jump on Liu Kang was when fans realized Deadly Alliance was going to be a Wham Episode of major proportions. And it went From Bad to Worse from there.
  • Similar thing happens in X, where it's revealed that Quan Chi resurrected Liu Kang as his chief enforcer - and the former Mortal Kombat champion actually feels better as a revenant.
• Politically Incorrect Hero: An intro with Kung Jin implies that he isn't too fond of him for being homosexual (granted, it's possible that it may stem from Kung Jin's past as a thief instead).
  Kung Jin: You never could accept me.
  Liu Kang: I am aware of your proclivities.
  Kung Jin: Wow, Thanks for the reassurance!
• Playing with Fire: His dragon-shaped fiery projectiles attacks.
• The Protagonist: In the first four games, as he is the character most invested in actually winning the tournament and dealing with Shang Tsung among other enemies (in the first game, this was to return honor to the Shaolin tournament after the death of his ancestor, though other games retcon the purpose of the tournament). He's also back into this for 11... sort of... (see Supporting Protagonist below).
• Rage Against the Mentor: In 9, Raiden's constant screw-ups, which led to the deaths of his friends, finally sap his patience. He loses all faith in his mentor and is determined to do things on his own. Even in his dying breaths, he pins the blame on Raiden for all that's happened to them.
• Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs: In his "Fire Fists" variation in Mortal Kombat X, his staple Bicycle Kick is swapped out for a series of rapid-fire body blows called Windmill Punches. It's also one of his Brutalities, in which he delivers them all to the opponent's face. Ouch.
• Reconstruction: MK 11 shows the original characterization he had for the first four games in the series and adds a bit more depth to it. Unlike the rather incorruptibly pure, chaste, and rather humorless hero he has traditionally been portrayed as, 11 shows Liu Kang face his doubts and inner demons, embrace his feelings for Kitana, and engage in playful jokes and banter with characters like Kung Lao and Johnny Cage, and even Trash Talk his opponents a little. Basically, it gives a fresh perspective to show why he was (and still is) Earthrealm's champion.
• Red Baron: As stated above, he is known as "The Immortal Champion of Mortal Kombat." Later subverted at the end of 9.
• Red Is Heroic:
  • He is the main hero of the series, and always has a red color motif in his outfits. Curiously enough, his in-game sprite in MK1 had no red on it, instead he wore a simple pair of black pants. Starting with MKII, he began to wear red: his iconic bandanna and a pair of black pants with red highlights.
  • Subverted in X, as he is revived as a revenant willfully following Shinnok, and is not displeased with this new arrangement. May count as Red and Black and Evil All Over
• Ret-Canon: The affection between him and Kitana was inserted into the games after the success of the first film.
• Roaring Rampage of Revenge:
  • Goes on one of these in II after his Shaolin temple is massacred by Baraka and his warriors.
  • Likewise, this is the result of Kung Lao's "death" at the hands of Shao Kahn in MK3. When it happens for real in MK9, Liu punches a hole straight through Kahn's stomach, seemingly killing him.
• Screaming Warrior: Hardly attacks without screaming his kiais.
• Series Mascot: While not as iconic as Scorpion or Sub-Zero, he's still The Hero of the series, with a dragon motif to evoke the iconic logo.
• She Is Not My Girlfriend: Constantly has to bicker with Kung Lao about this regarding Kitana in Shaolin Monks. Gets a brief nod in 9. In X, a pre-match intro against Mileena has her refer to Liu as "Sister's boyfriend!" He brushes off her claims with a half-annoyed, half-amused "Insane as always..." Of course, this is the game where Liu and Kitana are actually shown to be a Ruling Couple, so...
• Shout-Out: His Spring Autumn Knife skin in 11 is a clear reference to Son Goku from Dragon Ball.
• Signature Move: His Flying Bicycle Kick is his most iconic move, due to its sheer implausibility as well as showcasing his Funny Bruce Lee Noises.
• Silver Fox: His default look in X shows that he would've entered middle age finely if he didn't die and become a Revenant.
• Spam Attack: His Flying Bicycle Kick has him jump at an opponent and rapidly kick them in the chest.
• Spirit Advisor: Serves as this to Ermac in Deception. After Ermac helps free his friends, he tags along with Kitana for a bit (as their strong connection keeps him tethered to life) before Nightwolf volunteers to be his spiritual anchor in Armageddon. In an example of role reversal, he also serves as this to his former master Bo' Rai Cho in his Deception ending, complete with a Rousing Speech.
• Spirited Competitor: Has a bit of this in MK9. He shows some admiration of Kitana's fighting abilities when they first meet, and his battle cry ("Show me what you can do!") seems to showcase some his more competitive traits.
• Stance System: In X, his "Dualist" variation allows him to swap between a light and dark chi, changing the properties of his projectiles.
• Supporting Protagonist: Downplayed in 11. While he officially returns to being the protagonist in that game, several heroes also have their moments of ass-kicking and Character Development throughout the story, making him fall into this category. However, he still plays the most major part in the story, by facing his inner demons as well as having a key role in stopping Kronika.
• Sword and Fist: Human Liu Kang is a Bare-Fisted Monk for most of his game appearances but has made use of weapons twice. The first instances was in 4 where his weapon of choice was the Dragon Sword. The second was in 11 where nunchuks were integrated into his gameplay.
• Sympathy for the Devil: For an actual devil in this case. After defeating Scorpion and Quan Chi in the tournament, he tells the former that he doesn't fear him, he pities him.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Only the "tall" part might be an exception, as there are many others taller than him.
• Thou Shalt Not Kill: Sort of. Despite still being labeled a Fatality, his butterfly kick/uppercut finishing move in MK1 didn't show the screen darkening like the other characters' finishing moves did, inferring that it was nonlethal in comparison as an example of his Shaolin beliefs. This was changed in MKII's variation of this particular Fatality, and he's been just as graphic as other competitors since.
• Token Good Teammate: Mainly in the first game. While most of the characters had either evil or selfish motivations, Liu Kang's goal was specifically to end Shang Tsung's rule of the tournament. The subsequent retcons placed him within a larger group of heroes with Raiden as the mentor, though he's still the main hero.
• Took a Level in Badass: Raiden gives him his powers to empower Liu Kang into a Fire God.
• Two First Names: Subverted. "Liu" and "Kang" are both Chinese surnames as opposed to first names.
• Undying Loyalty: This part of Liu Kang persists even if Kronika attempts for them to fight to the death. 11 shows the past Liu Kang nearly undergoing a Faith–Heel Turn, but Raiden realizes they've been fighing for various timelines, from Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, to Mortal Kombat 9. He quickly apologies to Liu Kang when Shinnok's was corrupting him. With Raiden undergoing a Fusion Dance with both Liu Kangs, he becomes a Fire God and his faith in Raiden hasn't wavered.
• Unstoppable Rage: A trait of his channeled in some of his endings. Notably, his rage at the destruction of his temple "unleashes a fury that doesn't stop until the defeat of Shao Kahn." A similar rage comes up when Kung Lao "dies" in MK3 and dies for real in MK9.
• The Usurper: In MK9, he overthrows Raiden and becomes the new Protector of Earthrealm, but this comes as a cost as he loses his sanity and becomes a power-mad tyrant.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: He and Kung Lao bicker like two college students in their free time... which is probably what they are given their ages and how they study under an academy, albeit a martial arts one. Still, they have a brotherly bond and always have each other's backs no matter what.
• Walking Shirtless Scene: He has been shirtless for almost all of the series, the only exceptions being MK4, parts of MK9, and MKX.
• Warrior Monk: A Shaolin monk. He mostly peaceful and kind, but a very skilled warrior.
• Weak, but Skilled: Many of the foes he's went up against (Goro, Shang Tsung, Shao Kahn, and Shinnok) either have a bigger arsenal than him like having more weapons or powers or are flat out physically much stronger than him but he defeats them all because he's a very well-trained and ingenious combatant.
• Will They or Won't They?:
  • In his ending in 4, Kitana offers him the chance to rule by her side in Edenia and presumably other rewards. He politely declines, choosing to respect his duties as Earthrealm's champion. Then Liu Kang gets killed at the beginning of Deadly Alliance.
  • In MK9, he spares Kitana's life after he defeats her in their first battle. This plays a part of Kitana's High-Heel–Face Turn, and there's an affection growing on both of them to the other. Unfortunately, after the group's battle with Sindel, Kitana is mortally wounded and passes away in Liu Kang's arms.
  • In X, the two of them become the king and queen of the Netherealm after Shinnok's defeat as reverents.
  • In 11, everyone acknowledges that the two are officially an item, with Johnny Cage claiming that the two are "banging". This is confirmed in the ending where Kitana becomes Liu Kang's partner as he leads the New Era.
  • As a Fire God in 1, he maintains a very cordial friendship with the New Era's Kitana, moreso as comrades-in-arms than as lovers given this Kitana's respect towards Liu Kang moreso as Earthrealm's defender deity. That said, when he encounters Titan Kitana - very much implied to be the same one who he fought alongside with in the previous timeline - the two reunite to show Liu Kang has only ever really had eyes for her.
• With Great Power Comes Great Insanity: Shang Tsung's Ladder ending in 9 shows the sorcerer training with Bo' Rai Cho to help defeat a power-mad and newly-deified Liu Kang, who had usurped Raiden's role as protector of Earthrealm.
• The Worf Effect:
  • Deadly Alliance is used to show just how dangerous the titular duo are by murdering Liu Kang. He put up a good showing, but then Quan Chi blindsided him.
  • Liu Kang may be the best Earthrealm combatant but as a god Raiden still outstrips him in terms of power. In [MK9], he even accidentally kills him in an attempt to subdue him.
• World's Best Warrior:
  • As the two-time Mortal Kombat Champion of Earth, Liu Kang is considered to be the best combatant Earthrealm has to offer. He is repeatedly proven this claim by defeating Goro, Shang Tsung, Shao Kahn and even Shinnok, an Elder God. It's implied that the reason things got so bad after his death in Deadly Alliance is because Liu Kang wasn't there to defeat the villains like he always does. 11 also confirms that Liu Kang and Raiden are the biggest threats to Kronika's plans for creating the perfect timeline.
• Worthy Opponent: Liu Kang has the utmost respect for Raiden, Kitana, Jade, Sub-Zero (Kuai Liang), Scorpion, Kotal Kahn, Jacqui Briggs and Nightwolf.

Liu Kang (Zombie)

• Amazing Technicolor Population: He displays an unhealthy skin color combination of green and gray.
• Best Served Cold: Shows up in the Armageddon intro to confront Shang Tsung, his neck still snapped from when Shang killed him. After snapping his neck back, it's on. If 9 is any indication, Zombie Liu Kang managed to kill Shang Tsung and prevent him from reaching the top of Argus' Pyramid.
• Came Back Wrong: The result of being crudely revived by necromancy without his soul, which retains his true essence.
• The Cameo: In the intro of 9's story mode, where his corpse is among the many lining the steps of the pyramid during Armageddon, and later 11, where he and Raiden fight at the same pyramid during a flashback to previous timelines.
• Chained by Fashion: By learning the secrets of an ancient cult known as the Houan sect, Raiden was able to use necromancy and his lightning powers to reanimate Liu Kang's body with the help of bloody ceremonial chains. Unfortunately, these chains are not used as weapons in gameplay (they're only seen being wielded by Liu Kang in the intro to Armageddon).
• Demonic Possession: Used as a fatality in Deception. He transforms his body into a spiritual state and enters the victim's body, possessing it. A second later, the victim rips their own head off to reveal his head replacing it.
• One-Man Army: He slaughters the Shaolin to near extinction, which is quite impressive (and terrifying) when one remembers how it took a horde of Tarkatans to wipe a massive chunk of them beforehand.
• Monster from Beyond the Veil: It's Liu Kang coming back from the dead... as a psychotic zombie.
• Our Zombies Are Different: Despite actually having the appearance of a typical zombie, he is still as skilled in combat as he was when he was alive.
• Stance System: In Deception, he has Jun Fan and Pao Chui as unarmed styles, and Nunchaku as weapon style. In Armageddon, he drops Pao Chui.
• Warrior Undead: His body just keeps on fighting with no life. His soul lies in Outworld.

Liu Kang (Revenant)

"You will learn... there are worse things than death."

• Amazing Technicolor Population: As a revenant, he has a skin color of grayish-white, complete with yellow Volcanic Veins and Glowing Eyes of Doom.
• Arch-Enemy: Following the events of Mortal Kombat 9, he and Kitana consider Raiden to be this, blaming him for their deaths and the deaths of other fallen heroes. Both still harbor an intense hatred of the thunder god in Mortal Kombat X, and resent the fact that Jax, Sub-Zero and Scorpion have been restored to the side of good.
• Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: With his personality warped by the Netherrealm's evil, he becomes a self-centered and taunting Jerkass, blaming Raiden for all his problems. When Jax drops by in the Netherrealm to grab Quan Chi, he immediately throws a tirade about the faults in his ex-mentor.
• A Pupil of Mine Until He Turned to Evil: Used to be Raiden's protege and Earthrealm's champion, but a series of disputes between mentor and protege at the end of 9 culminated with Liu Kang attempting to kill Raiden and being slain. He promptly Came Back Wrong as a revenant bound to the will of Shinnok, a fallen Elder God, with an intense hatred of the thunder god.
• Battle Couple: With Kitana, particularly after they become the new rulers of the Netherrealm.
• Became Their Own Antithesis: An even worse case than Dark Raiden. While in X he was simply The Dragon to Quan Chi and Shinnok, by the time of 11 he has fully embraced being the same kind of Evil Overlord that he once defended Earthrealm against. He even goes as far as stealing the soul of his past self for more power which really drives home how far he has fallen.
• Being Good Sucks: He actually feels much better as a revenant, as it allows him to commit evil deeds.
• Berserk Button: Anything related to his former mentor after the events of Mortal Kombat 9. This is clearly evident in chapters 8 and 10, where he is shown ranting about his ex-mentor's faults.
• Brainwashed: This is what happens to him in MKX, as he is Reforged into a Minion to serve Quan Chi and Shinnok.
• Broken Ace: Started off as Raiden's golden boy, but begins to question his mentor's actions in 9, culminating with Liu Kang attacking Raiden out of rage. Raiden accidentally fries him to death and tries to apologize, but even in his dying breath, Liu Kang blames him for his failures. Things do not get better for Liu Kang in MKX, as he's resurrected as a revenant by Quan Chi, which comes with a hefty dose of Brainwashing.
• Broken Pedestal: Becomes this in MKX.
• Came Back Wrong: Resurrected as a revenant by Quan Chi and brainwashed to serve him and Shinnok.
• Calling the Old Man Out: Gives this to Raiden in Chapter 10 of MKX. Liu Kang blames Raiden for the situation he and the remaining revenants are in after Quan Chi's demise.
  Raiden: This is not your destiny, Liu Kang.
  Liu Kang: More visions, Raiden? Do you still see the future?
  Raiden: The visions are gone, but I know what should be.
  Liu Kang: I was put here by your hand!
  Raiden: An accident, which haunts me to this day!
  Liu Kang: I should thank you. You freed me. The Elder Gods you blindly serve? I will help Shinnok end their rule!
• Co-Dragons: He and Kitana become this to Quan Chi and Shinnok, and become the Netherrealm's co-rulers after Quan Chi is Killed Off for Real by Scorpion and Shinnok is reduced to a mere head by a corrupted Raiden. In 11 He’s once again this but this time with Geras and Cetrion to Kronika.
• The Conqueror: In his MKX arcade ending, he plans to conquer the other realms after becoming the ruler of the Netherrealm.
• Deadpan Snarker: As part of his new Jerkass characterization, he becomes this in X and 11; both in intro dialogues and in-game.
  Liu Kang: Kotal Kahn.
  Kotal Kahn: You will fail against Outworld's best.
  Liu Kang: Goro, Shang Tsung, or Shao Kahn?
  
  Raiden: (after briefly getting his ass handed by Liu Kang) This is not your destiny, Liu Kang.
  Liu Kang: More visions, Raiden? Do you still see the future?
• Deal with the Devil: Willfully becomes The Dragon to Shinnok and Quan Chi after becoming a revenant.
• Death of Personality: In the process of fusing revenant Liu Kang with past Liu Kang and giving them his power, Raiden overwrites the revenant personality with the younger, more humble personality. The resulting Fire God Liu Kang has all the knowledge from his revenant half, but none of the malice.
• Demoted to Dragon: After being presented as the Dragon Ascendant after Shinnok's defeat in X, Liu Kang and the revenants quickly enter the service of Kronika at the beginning of 11 after losing a major battle to the good guys.
• Despair Event Horizon: Crossed this at the end of MK9, as all of his friends and lover (save for Raiden, Sonya and Johnny Cage) are dead, finds the faith he had for his mentor shattered, and Came Back Wrong as a self-centered, taunting and vengeful revenant in MKX.
• The Dragon:
  • To Quan Chi and Shinnok in MKX, as he's shown reporting directly to both of them among the revenants.
  • To Kronika in 11. He was the first of her recruits, the one she interacted the most and the strongest of her mortal followers.
• Dragon Ascendant: Following Shinnok's defeat in MKX, he and Kitana become the new rulers of the Netherrealm.
• Driven to Villainy: In 9, Raiden's frequent screw ups took a big toll on his patience, sapping all the faith he had in his mentor. His accidental death by Raiden becomes the catalyst for Liu Kang's Face–Heel Turn after the former Mortal Kombat champion was revived as a revenant by Quan Chi, and he and Kitana willfully become the Netherrealm's new rulers after Shinnok's defeat.
• The Emperor: His apparently-semi-canon Arcade ending in MKX. He's no sorcerer or Elder God, but his masterful combat skills are more than enough to establish him as the new ruler of the Netherrealm following Shinnok's defeat, with an eye towards expanding his new domain. And the ending of Story Mode sees Liu and Kitana ruling the hell-plane side-by-side.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Kitana. The two serve as Quan Chi and Shinnok's Co-Dragons, and later become the Netherrealm's co-rulers after Shinnok's demise at the end of X
• Evil Costume Switch: In the new timeline as a revenant under Quan Chi's service, and dons an eviler costume as the new emperor of Netherrealm following Shinnok's defeat at the end of X. He most likely chose the new look to reflect her new role as Netherrealm's emperor. And as with all revenants, his skin turns grayish-white and has Volcanic Veins, the eyes turn orange, and his voice now has Power Echoes.
• Evil Feels Good:
  • Unlike some of the other revenants, Liu Kang is pretty content with his current existence because of how angry and betrayed he feels by Raiden. This eventually manifests itself as his willing ascension to Netherrealm emperor during the Evil Power Vacuum that ensues following Quan Chi and Shinnok's defeats.
  • In Jason Voorhees' ending in X, Liu takes notice of Jason's killing spree and offers him to take even more lives. Too bad for Liu Kang as Jason does not take orders from anybody except from his mother. Jason ends up killing him.
• Evil Former Friend: To Raiden. And to any of the heroes that are alive (Johnny Cage, Sonya, Kenshi, Fujin, etc.), have switched to the side of good (Sareena) or have been restored to life (Sub-Zero, Scorpion, Jax).
• Evil Is Not a Toy: Sorry Liu Kang, but Jason Voorhees isn't some run-of-the-mill zombie whom you can toy around with. He only takes orders from his mother.
• Evil Makeover: He goes from a heroic protege of Raiden to a merciless revenant who's covered in metallic armor after he was Reforged into a Minion by Quan Chi. He wears even more armor after becoming the Netherrealm's emperor.
• Evil Makes You Monstrous: He got all his flesh burned off at the end of MK9.
• Evil Sounds Deep: As a Revenant his voice drops, gaining a slight demonic tinge.
• Evil Wears Black: His Dark Emperor costume gives vibes of this.
• Eye Color Change: After being revived as a revenant, Liu Kang's eyes are shown to have changed from blue to reddish yellow, signifying his complete fall to the dark side.
• Face–Heel Turn: As an undead renevant, he's one of the few heroes who willingly became evil, more or less thanks to his newfound hatred towards Raiden. By the end of X's story mode, he and Kitana are installed as the new rulers of the Netherrealm, meaning they are now a direct foe of Earthrealm. His Arcade Ending in X has him becoming evil at the end, pondering the thought of conquering other realms.
• Faith–Heel Turn: Liu Kang, now resurrected as a revenant, still harbors a grudge against his former mentor in X. He even calls out and mocks the thunder god for the futility of his actions in 9.
• Fallen Hero: Becomes this during the events of MKX.
• Forced into Evil: Came Back Wrong as a revenant willfully serving Shinnok in X, and later on, becoming the Netherrealm's new ruler alongside Kitana following Shinnok's defeat at the hands of Cassie Cage and Raiden.
• Glowing Eyes of Doom: As part of his Evil Costume Switch during Mortal Kombat X, his eyes turn reddish-orange after his resurrection as a revenant.
• Hell Has New Management: At the end of Mortal Kombat X, it's shown that he and Kitana have taken over the Netherrealm after Shinnok's defeat.
• He Who Fights Monsters: Since being brought back as a revenant, he slowly started to slip into the same evil mindset that his enemies were. Of particular note is when he goes full circle and starts to absorb his younger self's soul, much like Shang-Tsung who he defeated long ago.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: In Jason Voorhees' MKX arcade ending, the revenant menace of Friday the 13th is offered a plentiful bounty of victims in exchange for his fealty to Liu Kang. But Jason begs to differ and responds in the most blunt but effective manner, as his loyalty lies only with one person: his own mother. Thought you could use Jason as your pawn, Liu Kang?
  • A more canonical version occurs in 11: By stealing his past self’s soul to power up for fighting Raiden, he gave Raiden a way to deify both versions of Liu Kang at once, with the younger one’s soul controlling the resulting amalgamation and effectively erasing the Revenant’s personality while retaining his memory to use against Kronika.
• I Hate Past Me: In 11 he hates the past version of himself who is still devoted to Raiden, but is also right to call him out on his Self-Serving Memory.
• Incorruptible Pure Pureness: Subverted in the new timeline. Whereas he was a Martial Pacifist and faithful follower of Raiden in the original timeline, the rebooted one adds more Character Development to his story, and he lost all the faith he had in his mentor by the end of MK9. Even after being Reforged into a Minion in MKX, things haven't changed much, as he starts to feel much better as a revenant.
• It Gets Easier: Starts to appreciate his new form as a revenant.
• It's Personal with the Dragon: In MK11, Big Bad Kronika is pretty much a force of nature and Generic Doomsday Villain. On the other hand, Revenants Liu Kang has much more personal enmity with the heroes and spite them every time they met.
• It Sucks to Be the Chosen One: Though he was The Champion to Raiden, a chain of events in MK9 have made him go against his now ex-mentor, culminating with his own death. Even after being revived as a revenant in MKX, he blames Raiden for what happened to all of the fallen heroes.
• It's All About Me: Because of everything he went through in MK9, he embraces his role as a revenant to get revenge on the Elder Gods for just letting it all happen, ignorant of what could happen if they're overthrown. Plus, he also becomes increasingly self-centered towards others. In 11, he accuses Raiden of having killed him simply to steal the glory of defeating Shao Khan, which his past self quickly identifies as Self-Serving Memory.
• Jerkass: Becomes a self-centered and taunting Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy thanks to his current status as a revenant.
• Jerk Justifications: Has several reasons for becoming a self-centered and taunting Jerkass on this page, including him calling out Raiden for his failures in Mortal Kombat 9. 11 implies that this is a large part of the revenants' brainwashing, amplifying character flaws and creating an obsession with grievances in order to rationalize their loyalty to Shinnok.
• Kick the Dog: He and the other remaining revenants gang up on Raiden in chapter 10 of Mortal Kombat X.
• Light Is Not Good: Becomes this following his Face–Heel Turn in MKX.
• Martial Arts Headband: In MKX, his headband gets tattered.
• Meet the New Boss: In the ending cutscene of Mortal Kombat X, it's shown that he and Kitana became the new rulers of the Netherrealm following Shinnok's defeat.
• More than Mind Control: Not only does he become a revenant, he actually appreciates this new form, thanks to his newfound hatred of Raiden.
• Never My Fault: Blames Raiden for his own death in Mortal Kombat X, when it was clearly his own fault. Raiden only killed him by accident, even if he does seriously regret it. In 11, this start dipping into Self-Serving Memory when confronting his past self as he claims Raiden killed him to deny him the "glory" of stopping Shao Khan when in reality Raiden was trying to tell him to hold off for a moment until Shao Khan started merging the realms so the Elder Gods could take action. As his past self correctly points out, Liu Kang was the one who couldn't grasp the logic of that and attacked Raiden, forcing the God to defend himself.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: After they become the Netherrealm's new rulers, he and Kitana do not show any anger or blaming Raiden (who's now corrupted) for their fates in The Stinger, and are baffled when the thunder god tosses Shinnok's head at their feet. Now knowing he's not holding back anymore either.
• Opposed Mentors: Following his resurrection as a revenant, he chooses to side with Shinnok and Quan Chi over Raiden.
• The Paragon Always Rebels: Went from being the Mortal Kombat Champion and a protege of Raiden to a revenant willfully following Shinnok, a fallen Elder God.
• Protagonist Journey to Villain: Shows more of this in the new timeline, following his resurrection as a revenant under Quan Chi's service. He feels better as a revenant because of how angry and betrayed he feels towards Raiden. This eventually manifests into him and Kitana becoming the new rulers of the Netherrealm following Shinnok's defeat at the hands of Raiden.
• Rage Against the Mentor: In 9, Raiden's frequent screw ups took a big toll on his patience, sapping all the faith he had in his mentor. Even in his dying breaths, he blamed Raiden for all that's happened to them. He still harbors a big grudge against his ex-mentor as a revenant in MKX, and not even the prospect of Kitana staying with him will calm him down. In fact, both of them blame the thunder god for their current situation.
• Rage Against the Heavens: Is willing to help Shinnok overthrow the Elder Gods.
• Red and Black and Evil All Over: His color scheme, with a bit of silver here and there for flavor.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: In Mortal Kombat 11 with the other revenants, with their Volcanic Veins shifting to match.
• Reforged into a Minion: Resurrected as a revenant and brainwashed to serve Quan Chi and Shinnok in MKX. Not only this, but he feels better as a revenant because of his intense hatred towards Raiden.
• Rogue Protagonist: Came Back Wrong as a revenant serving Shinnok, after turning against his mentor at the climax of MK9.
• Ruling Couple: With Kitana as the new rulers of the Netherrealm at the end of X, after Shinnok's downfall.
• Self-Serving Memory: In 11, his obsessive hate for Raiden is twisted into a belief that he died because Raiden "wanted the glory" of stopping Shao Kahn, when in reality Raiden was acting in self-defense (something the past Liu Kang quickly calls him out on).
• Shadow Archetype: Serves as this to his past self in 11. Liu Kang may be the Chosen One and the champion of two Mortal Kombat tournaments, but Revenant Liu Kang is what would happen if he lets the glory get to his head and lets it rule his decision-making.
• Sour Outside, Sad Inside: A lot of his aggression comes from the pain and misery that his Face–Heel Turn brought him in the first place.
• Start of Darkness: A series of disputes between mentor and protege in 9 led to his disillusionment with Raiden (and is accidentally killed off by the latter), and things haven't become better for Liu in X as he willfully became The Dragon to Quan Chi following his resurrection as a revenant, and his willingness to become the Netherrealm's new ruler alongside Kitana after Shinnok's demise.
• Spikes of Villainy: His Dark Emperor outfit has spikes on the shoulder guards and incorporates skeleton designs.
• Stunned Silence: In the stinger for Mortal Kombat X, Liu Kang and Kitana have puzzled looks on their faces in response to Raiden's warning.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: Many of his intro dialogues with the other kombatants in MKX show that he's becoming more of an Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy. The fact that he's canonically a revenant in this game may account for his self-centered behavior; it allows him to vent the anger he harbors toward Raiden. He is not only angry at the thunder god's actions in Mortal Kombat 9, but also sneers at Kung Jin's gay lifestyle, becomes jealous of Johnny Cage's status as Raiden's new champion, and thinks of himself as superior to Kung Lao and Kenshi. Jacqui Briggs even calls him a whiner for this very reason.
• Transhuman Treachery: He seems to appreciate his new status as a revenant, though it's unclear how much of it is due to Shinnok warping his mind.
• Uncertain Doom: After he gets both of his legs broken by proxy of Shao Kahn breaking his past self's legs in Aftermath, he's never seen again. It's not known whether he lived until the time reset or not.
• The Unfettered: Seems to be part of being a revenant, with the afflicted adopting any convenient rationalization they can think of to justify their heinous actions. Liu Kang in particular leans heavily on his hatred of Raiden and the Elder Gods to justify serving Shinnok, and is willing to consume his past self's soul for a power boost just to even the odds in 11; an act Raiden condemns as unnatural. And his MKX arcade ending shows him pondering on the thought of conquering other realms after taking over the Netherrealm. He even takes notice of Jason Voorhees's killing spree and offers him to take even more lives, but Jason had other ideas.
• Unholy Matrimony: He becomes the emperor of the Netherrealm, ruling jointly with Kitana at the end of Mortal Kombat X.
• Undeathly Pallor: A grayish-white skin after being revived as a brainwashed minion.
• Volcanic Veins: She gains these upon being revived as a brainwashed minion of Shinnok.
• We Used to Be Friends: Used to be The Champion and a good friend to Raiden, but a series of disagreements between the two in Mortal Kombat 9 ends with Liu Kang's death. Both of them are now arch-enemies, and fallen heroes at the end of MKX. Several of the other Earthrealm protectors also lament on this.
• You Monster!: Raiden calls Liu Kang out on how he has "perverted your own nature" after he absorbs his past self's soul.
• Your Soul Is Mine!: In MK11's finale he uses Shinnok's magic to steal the soul of the past version of himself in order to gain a massive power boost against Raiden. However, this gives Raiden the chance to merge with Liu Kang.

Fire God Liu Kang - UNMARKED SPOILERS

Fire God Liu Kang

---

"The realms will not fight your endless wars."

• 11th-Hour Ranger: In 11, where he serves as the protagonist of Story Mode's final chapter and singlehandedly turns the tide against Kronika.
• The Ace:
  • It's Liu Kang before he became a Broken Ace, with Raiden's power added to his own, and without getting Drunk with Power. Kronika is rattled by his ascension, and he then goes on to immediately show her fear was very well founded.
  • Even after having given up his powers as the Keeper of Time, he's still shown in 1 as a formidable demigod who successfully guided Earthrealm and Outworld to peace and prosperity unseen in any previous timeline. After regaining his full power he easily outweighs any other member of the roster as the most powerful being alive.
• Adaptational Relationship Overhaul:
  • As he's an eons old demigod and Earthrealm's protector in this timeline, his romantic relationship with Kitana never started, although it still remains cordial due to Liu Kang being close to the royal family. That said, the love between Liu Kang and the Kitana he knew in his own timeline is as strong as it ever was.
  • He and King Jerrod never even met in previous timelines, as Jerrod's murder long predated his birth. In 1, they were old friends.
  • In prior timelines, Kung Lao was Liu Kang's best friend, while Raiden was his mentor; in the New Era, where Liu Kang is the demigod protector of Earthrealm, Raiden is now his protege, while Kung Lao is just another potential champion, someone Liu Kang certainly likes, but without the close friendship he enjoyed with the Kung Lao he once knew.
• All-Loving Hero: While he's no pushover, Liu Kang is a compassionate deity. In crafting the New Era in 1, he gave villains as vile as Shao Kahn, Shang Tsung, Quan Chi and even Shinnok a second lease on life (though he made sure to keep the latter three far away from power; Liu Kang is compassionate, not stupid). Even when some characters like Shang Tsung or Bi-Han fall short of his hopes, Liu Kang is more disappointed than angry and proudly admits to Shang Tsung that he will never regret giving someone a chance. That said, if he's sufficiently pushed enough…
• Almighty Janitor: In the cosmic sense, after making certain alterations to the New Era, he left the Hourglass in Geras' hands to serve as its guardian while he focuses exclusively on his role as Earthrealm's divine protector. This is in stark contrast to his predecessor Kronika, mother to two Elder Gods, who often interfered with the flow of time and restarted it dozens, if not hundreds, of times in pursuit of a desired outcome that eluded her. In fact, Liu Kang deliberately gave up his original position so he wouldn't end up like Kronika.
• Always Need What You Gave Up: Ends up needing to regain his powers as Keeper of Time in order to stop Titan Shang Tsung from destroying his timeline.
• Arch-Enemy: He will always consider Shang Tsung to be a great enemy of his regardless of timelines, and even made Shang Tsung's life in his New Era difficult on purpose. This is very noticeable when Geras went to see him, his face went from a happy smile to a scowl the moment Geras brings up Shang Tsung averting his destiny. However he doesn't have a problem with a Shang Tsung if he is fighting on his side or a Good Counterpart from another timeline. Only if he's malevolently evil.
• Badass Boast: He gives an impressive one in the launch trailer for 1:
  Fire God Liu Kang: You have chosen to defy peace…Then you have chosen war with a God!
• Badass Fingersnap: One of his Fatalities in 1 has him send his opponent through a portal to space, then instantly conjure up a black hole by snapping his fingers.
• Batman Gambit: In Aftermath, upon discovering Shang Tsung and his warning that without Kronika's crown, the one he had just destroyed, there would be ramifications upon using the hourglass. Thus, he sends Shang Tsung to retrieve another crown before Kronika's defeat while he is forced to stay. But this is Shang Tsung, Liu Kang doesn't just realize he's going to backstab all of his allies, he's counting on it and allows Shang Tsung to successfully steal the crown for himself in the knowledge that it would be safe while Kronika was dealt with. Immediately after Kronika's defeat, he stops Shang Tsung, revealing that he never had to stay with the Hourglass and challenges him to one final kombat. Ironically, this "he must win" gambit is very similar to the plan Raiden was executing to defeat Shao Kahn in the new timeline, a plan Liu Kang found so ridiculous that it got him killed in a battle opposing Raiden. It's eventually revealed in 1 that the outcome of this fight, regardless of result, split the rebooted timeline into multiple timelines where every ending for 11 is deemed canon, including Liu Kang besting Shang Tsung and'' Shang Tsung besting Liu Kang.
• Battle Couple: In Chapter 14 of 1, he regains his Time Keeper powers, and summons allies from other realities. One of his reinforcements is a Kitana Time Keeper, who he recognizes as his Kitana. They join forces in the upcoming battle after sharing a kiss and a small moment together.
• Beat Them at Their Own Game: He manages to deceive the extremely manipulative Shang Tsung into believing that he had to stay behind because of his duties to the Hourglass and essentially allows him to betray and/or kill most kombatants before appearing and revealing that everything Shang Tsung did went according to his plan. Tsung is even impressed by Liu Kang's ruthlessness.
  Fire God Liu Kang: (to Shang Tsung) A lie. Something you know well.
• Benevolent Boss: Unlike Kronika, he treats Geras as a trusted friend and confidante instead of a disposable slave, like she did.
• The Big Damn Kiss: When he meets Titan Kitana in 1, and they each realize that the other is the same Kitana and Liu Kang they fell in love with in the previous timeline, the two of them immediately share a kiss.
• Big Good:
  • Becomes this for the heroes in 11's final chapter, inheriting the position from Raiden.
  • In his ending of Aftermath, the godly Liu Kang also goes on to become the new Keeper of Time, rebuilding the Mortal Kombat universe and safeguarding the flow of history.
  • He's outright this in 1 as well, being the gatherer of Earthrealm's champions and the main protector of Earthrealm.
• Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu: His tower ending in 1 has him learn that reclaiming his full power as Keeper of Time to defeat Titan Shang Tsung destroyed his immortality. While his lifespan still spans eons and he could outlive most of the cast, he will die eventually. He accepts this and decides that Geras will succeed him when he eventually passes.
• Brought Down to Badass: Downplayed. After restarting history and crafting the new universe and all beings within it Liu Kang willingly gave up his mantle of the Keeper of Time and the powers that came with it, going from a Titan to "merely" the guardian deity of Earthrealm. Despite this, he's still the most powerful being in Earthrealm, and arguably of other realms too, who has centuries of experience upholding his role. He reclaims his Titan power later in order to put himself back on equal footing with Titan Shang Tsung, though the process irreversibly breaks his immortality.
• Canon Immigrant: The concept of Liu Kang becoming a god of fire was first presented in the non-canon Arcade epilogue meta-narrative from 9, a narrative that extended into some endings in X. Fortunately, 11's Fire God Liu Kang is unambiguously a good guy, whereas the original concept was a Fallen Hero gone mad with power.
• Contrasting Replacement Character: Is this to Thunder God!Raiden from the previous timelines. While both clearly take their duty as Earthrealm's protector seriously, Raiden would appear to mortals in electrifying grandeur, constantly consult the Elder Gods to make a decision and would often be cryptic with his allies. Liu Kang, by contrast, prefers to keep his displays of power to a minimum, is more decisive when confronting dangers to the realm and is overall more upfront and trusting with his allies.
• Create Your Own Villain: In crafting the New Era, Liu Kang changed the destinies of many of his old adversaries in the hopes of giving them a second chance to do something good with their lives. However, while many of the former villains did become better people because of his actions, some of them fell back into villainy anyway, sometimes because of Liu Kang's efforts to avert this (not to mention that, as the New Era's creator, Liu Kang literally created his own antagonists):
  • To avoid them becoming the power-hungry sorcerers who plagued the realms, Liu Kang deposited Shang Tsung and Quan Chi in lives of meaninglessness on Outworld, intent on keeping them far from power and hoping this new existence would humble them. Instead, it bred resentment for their lots in life, and no sooner were they offered power did the two leap at the chance, reforming the Deadly Alliance and becoming exactly the threats that Liu Kang hoped to prevent (albeit not quite as powerful as they were in past timelines).
  • By making Shao a soldier in Outworld's service who had to earn his strength, Liu Kang avoided him becoming a realm-ruining tyrant, but Shao's devout loyalty to Outworld made him a staunch nationalist whose paranoia about Liu Kang made him dangerous regardless. Even without Titan Shang Tsung's interference, Liu Kang worried that a militant like Shao could become a threat to Earthrealm should they show weakness, and there was clearly no love lost between the two.
  • In making the Lin Kuei Earthrealm's guardians and giving Bi-Han the position of the clan's heir, Liu Kang hoped to prevent Sub-Zero from being used as a pawn of evil, doomed to become a corrupted shadow of his former self. However, the prestigious yet secretive position swelled Bi-Han's already present arrogance, and he resented the idea of serving Earthrealm instead of helping to rule it, fueling the ambition that led to him betraying his own father to his death even before Shang Tsung tempted him into betraying Earthrealm. In trying to make Bi-Han a hero, Liu Kang inadvertently allowed him to become as evil as Noob Saibot without needing the Netherrealm's corruption.
• A Day in the Limelight:
  • He's the focus of the last chapter of the main game of 11.
  • He becomes the main focus of Chapter 14 in MK1's story mode.
• Deadpan Snarker: Ascending to godhood and crafting his own timeline hasn't robbed Liu Kang of his wit.
  Johnny Cage: I don't know how, but you made me even more perfect!
  Liu Kang: If only I had made you more humble.
• Deity of Human Origin: Unlike the other gods shown in the series, this one was born out of a fusion between a demigod (Raiden) and a mortal (Liu Kang).
• Depower:
  • He doesn't appear to have the lightning powers that the Thunder God Raiden of the previous timeline gave him back in 11.
  • To ensure that he doesn't end up like Kronika, he gave up his Keeper of Time powers after he constructed the foundations for his New Era. He ends up having to get them back from Geras in order to stop Titan Shang Tsung.
• Disappointed in You:
  • When he comes to recruit Johnny and Kenshi early in the story in 1, Liu Kang disapprovingly notes that Kenshi's actions (invading Johnny's home and demanding Sento) do him no credit.
  • Post-story, Liu Kang laments that both Shang Tsung and Bi-Han have succumbed to their worst qualities despite him giving them a second chance, even telling Kuai Liang that he'd had "such high hopes" for Bi-Han.
• Discard and Draw: 1 is the first time that Liu Kang's signature bicycle kick does not feature as main part of his moveset, instead being relegated to his Fatal Blow. In its place, he now has a fiery spin kick combo that can be comboed into a flip kick that functions like an uppercut.
• Doppelmerger: Fire God Liu Kang is a result of Raiden merging with human Liu Kang and Revenant Liu Kang.
• The Dreaded: Even the possibility of Raiden and Liu Kang joining power scares Time Master Top God Kronika enough that she set up the Eternal Recurrence of them falling out and killing each other. Her fear was justified by the end when Liu Kang shatters her and took her place as Keeper of the new timeline.
• Earn Your Happy Ending: He truly manages to bring peace to the New Era at the end of 1. The majority of combatants from his timeline are alive, a majority of threats like General Shao are neutralized and the Dark Titans from other timelines have been defeated, paving the way for a new future.
• "End of the World" Special: By defeating Kronika (and in Aftermath, Shang Tsung), he becomes the new ruler of time and thus can remake the timeline however he chooses. His goal is to ultimately Set Right What Once Went Wrong. As revealed later in 1, his timeline is just one of many that spawned as a result of his fight against Shang Tsung.
• Eternal Love:
  • Even after eons apart, Liu Kang and Kitana remain deeply in love and when they reunite as Titans in MK1, they happily embrace, and subsequently work together so well that one would think mere days had passed since they were last together, not an eternity.
  • A platonic version with Raiden and Kung Lao; meeting his mentor and best friend again as Titans, it's clear that Liu Kang's love and friendship with both men hasn't been lessened in the slightest by the countless millennia it's been since they've seen each other.
• Even the Loving Hero Has Hated Ones: When reshaping the universe, Liu Kang was willing to give even the most vile villains in the universe, even Shao Kahn, a second chance at life with positions of power and prestige. He does not grant this opportunity to Shang Tsung and Quan Chi, relegating them to the dregs of society, and he immediately sends his agents after Shang Tsung when he learns of him subverting that original design. Even then, his intros with Shang Tsung show that, while he was rightfully wary of him gaining power, Liu Kang still hoped that Shang Tsung might do some good with his life, and is more disappointed than angry that he chose to do otherwise.
• Evil Twin: He encounters one from Titan Shang Tsung's timeline. He brings up how he bested twins far stronger than he is (namely, his Revenant).
• Final Boss: Of Aftermath, if you choose Shang Tsung.
• Freudian Slip: When he sees that Kenshi has been blinded, but still managed to bond with Sento, Liu Kang remarks that he'd hoped the circumstances of that bond would be different "this time", an inadvertent hint to the prior timelines of which everyone else is unaware; when Kenshi is confused by the turn of phrase, Liu Kang brushes over it by claiming to have misspoken. It happens again later in the same conversation, though no one seems to pick up on it; upon being informed that Quan Chi is working with Shang Tsung, Liu Kang expresses his surprise at "a new Deadly Alliance".
• Fusion Dance: Predominantly type B - Power Booster. Fire God Liu Kang has his physical appearance and fire power, Raiden's lightning and his Revenant's knowledge.
• A God I Am Not: He may be a Fire God, a Keeper of Time, and the engineer of the New Era, but he does not see himself as a capital "G" God.
  Sindel: Am I to kneel to my creator? Do you expect worship?
  Liu Kang: No, your Majesty. My prior role [as Keeper of Time] was thrust upon me by circumstance. I am in no way divine.
• God Is Flawed: Despite being magnitudes more powerful than anyone else in the Kast at the peak of his power Liu Kang is adamant that he was neither omnipotent nor infallible. He refused to micromanage the universe and gave up his Titanhood specifically because he did not trust himself to not succumb to the same desire to "perfect" his timeline that drove Kronika mad, and as a result even before Titan Shang Tsung started meddling there are several evils plaguing the world that he professes are not of his design, such as Tarkat or Vaeternian vampirism. Also deconstructed, in that it led some of his creations to be annoyed at him and treating him as an example of God Is Inept, and not completely micromanaging has the consequence of some of his creations to eventually turn evil anyway despite his efforts leading them to the right path (Bi-Han).
• God Is Good: While he's not perfect, he's doing a much better job both in Raiden's role as Earthrealm's protector, and Kronika's as Keeper of Time. He acts quietly but directly in the lives of his champions, trains and advises them, and gives them as much emotional support as he is able. He even had the chance to erase his very worst enemies, but instead chose to give them another chance to live a life without evil. He does not regret this choice, even when they fail to live up to his expectations.
• God Is Inept: As seen in pre-fight intros with Li Mei, he laments not being able to fix all injustices as well as knowing who will become a threat:
  Liu Kang: It is beyond my power to prevent all injustices.
  Li Mei: Then it shall always fester.
  
  Li Mei: If you know those who become criminals, tell me.
  Liu Kang: Even I cannot foretell the future flawlessly, Li Mei.
• God of Fire: He isn't called Fire God Liu Kang for nothing.
• God of Good: Liu Kang is the God of Fire, as well as the Big Good of Mortal Kombat 11 and Mortal Kombat 1.
• The Gods Must Be Lazy: Defied. The whole point of his New Era is that he is not playing by the rules of the Elder Gods that forbade divine intervention. And yet, it's Reconstructed in that he believes himself flawed, is sometimes not as capable as others would like and doesn't want to micromanage people's lives. That means that sometimes, despite his divine power, bad stuff still happens when people choose evil over good.
• Good Counterpart: He becomes one to Kronika at the end of the story of 11: a godly being with access to the Hourglass, but one who will let people choose their own destiny rather than controlling all aspects of their lives like Kronika did. In 1, he also considers Geras a friend and ally and greets him warmly, rather than Kronika, who considered him nothing more than a (useful) tool. Liu Kang even entrusts him with guarding the Hourglass while he attends to his duties as protector of Earthrealm.
• Good Is Not Soft: He may be the Big Good of the New Era, but if an irredeemable villain threatens the world on his watch, Liu Kang will retaliate with the sheer brutality you can expect from a Mortal Kombat character.
• Good Wears White: Liu Kang is the Big Good of this new era and wears a white shirt.
• Guile Hero: In Aftermath. Liu Kang intentionally lied to Shang Tsung of staying behind, knowing too well how the events will unfold and anticipating Shang Tsung's betrayal and chaos from the start. Shang Tsung, surprised, taunts Liu Kang of sacrificing his own friends for this moment, only for Liu Kang to rebuff that they will be alive in the New Era. The ensuing battle split the timeline into several, two of which had them winning this specific fight.
• Heel–Faith Turn: Whatever's left of his Revenant besides his knowledge has completely merged with him.
• History Repeats: Just as the Raiden of the past gave up his divine essence to destroy the corruption within Liu Kang, Lord Liu Kang finds himself mortal at the end of the story and working to prepare his successor — in this case, Geras — for matters of his absence. He still has godly powers and a long life ahead of him, and full confidence in Geras's ability to act justly as Keeper of Time.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: As Fire God Liu Kang, he pulls a massive Batman Gambit in Aftermath by sending Shang Tsung to the past to retrieve Kronika's crown for his plans, knowing full well the sorcerer is the only one capable of doing it through his own treachery and machinations. Should the player side against him in the climax, all of this comes back to bite him in the ass tremendously; Shang Tsung goes on to defeat him, steal his soul, and become the all-powerful dictator of time itself.
• Humble Hero: And he still is even after restarting the timeline. Even after the final boss is defeated, he refers the fighter chosen by the player as The Chosen One over himself. The character in question thanks his honesty.
• I Did What I Had to Do: In Aftermath, he foresaw Shang Tsung betraying him, but he still needed that snake to retrieve Kronika's crown, so he lied that he couldn't leave the Hourglass in order to catch Shang Tsung off-guard after the latter defeated Kronika, took the crown, and betrayed Shao Khan and Sindel. When Shang Tsung throws it in his face that letting him and the other villains win lead to the sacrifice and misery of Liu Kang's friends, Liu Kang retorts that he will bring them back in his New Era.
• Immune to Fate: By gaining Raiden's powers, he also gains his ability to exist outside time and as such, any alterations to the timeline don't affect him whatsoever.
  • When Kronika once again restarts the timeline and almost everyone else starts to rewind, Liu Kang is one of the few unaffected by the rewind.
  • He was also completely unaffected by his past selves getting crippled and possibly killed. This helps surprise Shang Tsung, as not only does he fall for Liu Kang's lie that he can't leave the Hourglass, but also because he possibly did not know that immortals exist outside of time.
• Invincible Hero: Emphasized during the assault on Kronika's Keep, where the allied forces are engaged in heavy battle with Kronika's army, and Fire God Liu Kang instantly obliterates the latter in one shot. Even after Kronika rewinds all of his allies away from the battle, Fire God Liu Kang defeats the Revenant Kitana, Jade and Kung Lao, then Cetrion and then Kronika in short order, only briefly faltering against the Revenants until he gets a pep-talk from Raiden. It does get subverted hard if Shang Tsung is victorious in Aftermath however.
• It Has Been an Honor: Before they face Kronika, Fire God Liu Kang takes a moment to tell Kitana and Kung Lao that he is honored to fight beside them, and they return the sentiment.
• Jerkass to One: Downplayed; For the most part, he gave everyone better lives in the New Era with even villains gaining positions of power including Shao Kahn, but his grudge against Shang Tsung led him to give the sorcerer what Liu Kang describes as a "meaningless life", which due to Shang Tsung's dislike towards honest work led him to become a Snake Oil Salesman in squalor. That said, he did hold out hope that a humbler existence might lead to Shang Tsung becoming a better person in the New Era.
• Kirk Summation: He tells Cetrion that even as an Elder God, she cannot defeat him because her heart isn't in agreement with Kronika's plans. He tries to sway her, but Cetrion declaring her absolute loyalty to Kronika puts the kibosh on that.
• Lightning/Fire Juxtaposition: Played With in one person; his native doubled fire powers are combined with Raiden's lightning. Two beings that were manipulated into opposition across uncountable timelines now acting in concert.
• Medium Awareness: In an intro with Johnny Cage, when the latter was being surprised about having "hooked up" with someone else in the previous timeline, he replied with "Spoilers, Johnny Cage".
• Mentor Archetype:
  • His ending in Aftermath sees Fire God Liu Kang take on this role to the (eventual) Great Kung Lao, as Raiden had before him.
  • He's this to the new generation of Earthrealm champions in 1 as well, particularly the now-mortal Raiden.
• Mr. Fanservice:
  • After becoming a god, Liu Kang doesn't wear a shirt, showing off his impressive muscles.
  • A subtle example in 1, but Liu Kang's outfit, with its open shirt, shows more skin than most male kombatants, and Liu Kang's good looks are on full display, even if they never get specific attention.
• Mystical White Hair: 11 only, as after Raiden turns him into a god, his hair turns completely white, save his eyebrows. In MK1, his hair returns as black, presumably after giving up his Titan powers.
• Nice Guy: Godhood hasn't robbed Liu Kang of his fundamental decency, and has, if anything, enhanced it; he's as humble, compassionate, and polite as he was at his best, and his kindness is reflected in the nature of his New Era, which was intended as a clean slate where even the worst of Liu Kang's old enemies had a chance to do something good with their lives. As a demigod and Earthrealm's protector, he's a warm, courteous presence who encourages his proteges to be their best selves, and hearing that he has been a positive influence on the lives of his friends puts a wide, joyful smile on his face.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero:
  • Aftermath has Shang Tsung reveal that by destroying Kronika's crown with her, the Hourglass cannot be controlled properly and could end up destroying the realms if used without it.
  • One possible ending of Aftermath has Liu Kang's gambit, intended to dispose of Shang Tsung once and for all, backfire badly and see Liu Kang himself dead and Shang Tsung elevated to Titanhood.
  • Twofold in 1:
    • By dispatching Kenshi, Johnny, and Kung Lao on a secret mission to capture Shang Tsung, Liu Kang ultimately risks all-out war between Outworld and Earthrealm when the heroes are discovered, and if Li Mei hadn't chosen to trust the Fire God's word, Liu Kang might never have been able to convince Sindel that his motives were noble, rather than an attempt to undermine her government.
    • Liu Kang's warning that not a word Shang Tsung says should be trusted (which would normally be very prudent advice) indirectly results in Kenshi being blinded; the Earthrealm heroes come across Shang Tsung preparing to give Mileena an injection, assume that he's up to no good, and prevent it, only for this to be one of the exceedingly rare occasions where Shang Tsung isn't lying, and the injection was intended to suppress Mileena's Tarkat, which manifests and leads the berserk princess to gouge out Kenshi's eyes.
• No Sympathy: While Liu Kang is a very empathetic deity who regrets many of the trials people have undergone in the New Era, he doesn't spare a shred of sympathy for the plight of Vaeternus, as the realm's vampiric people have no one but themselves to blame for their famine and overpopulation crisis; challenged by Nitara, Liu Kang makes it clear that it's not his job to save Vaeternus from its own hubris.
• Off with His Head!: Should Fire God Liu Kang lose two rounds to Kronika in the final fight, she creates a blade to cut his head off with in a Non-Standard Game Over.
• Oh, Crap!: Learning that Shang Tsung and Quan Chi have not only become powerful sorcerers again in the New Era, but have come together in a new Deadly Alliance clearly shakes Liu Kang, who was already wary of Shang Tsung alone gaining power.
• Paradox Person:
  • Aside from being a mix of his past human and present undead self and Raiden (which already creates a paradox in itself as his past self's death would have been completely undone and it would have prevented his Revenant's existence), he also exists outside of time as Raiden revealed to have been a property immortals have.
  • In Aftermath, when the three people that make up his being don't merge (with his human and Revenant possibly dying too), he still shows up in the end to confront Shang Tsung. Simply put, there are so many factors that prove that he shouldn't even exist but he still does due to being an immortal.
  • In the Battle of Armageddon in the climax of 1, he even meets other versions of himself and Shang Tsung, and even fusions based on them.
• Pay Evil unto Evil:
  • After defeating Kronika, Liu Kang doesn't hesitate to destroy her in a brutal fashion, superheating her body until it turns to glass, then shattering it, killing the mad Titan.
  • Should he defeat Shang Tsung at the end of Aftermath, Liu Kang uses his godly power to erase him on the spot, a deed he repeats when facing Titan Shang Tsung is laid low in 1.
• Physical God: Powerful enough to match Elder God Cetrion and Titan Kronika in kombat.
• Power Floats:
  • In cutscenes during the story mode, he can be seen hovering about the ground where other characters are running.
  • He approaches the Great Kung Lao this way at the very end of Aftermath, if he wins the final battle.
  • In the announcement trailer for 1, he approaches the now-mortal Raiden and Kung Lao in preparation for "the storm that's brewing".
• Power Glows: Liu Kang now has a set of sweet, glowing tattoos of light on his shoulders and upper arms.
• Raise Him Right This Time: Rather than simply kill off the villains of the previous timelines before they could become a threat in the New Era, Liu Kang preferred to use the power of the Hourglass to guide their destinies down a hopefully more heroic path. An approach that has had varied success, though he states that he will never regret giving even the worst of his enemies at least the chance to reform.
• Rebuilt Pedestal: Although Past Liu Kang absorbs the knowledge and memories of his revenant self, by the end, his faith in Raiden is restored and they bid farewell on good terms.
  Raiden: I look forward to meeting again, in the next timeline.
  Fire God Liu Kang: (smiles) Then I will not say goodbye.
• The Scapegoat: Revealing himself as the keeper of this timeline (and thus, this world's creator), he has become this for the misfortunes of many, even among some of his allies. Even if it was beyond his control.
• Sequel Hook: The Good Ending of Aftermath involves him descending to the new Earth, meeting the original Kung Lao, still a humble novice, and making said Kung Lao his champion. 1 is the ensuing result of Liu Kang winning the fight for the Hourglass against Shang Tsung though it's eventually revealed that both outcomes of said battle are canon.
• Shotoclone: Liu Kang finally gets an anti-air special move in 1 to make him conform to the archetype as befitting the main character of a fighting game series.
• So Proud of You:
  • When Raiden wins the right to represent Earthrealm, and later wins the tournament, Liu Kang expresses only pride in his protege's success.
  • In an intro with Johnny Cage, Liu Kang praises him for giving Sento to Kenshi, calling the act "most honorable".
• Sole Survivor: He, Geras and Shang Tsung are the only confirmed remaining denizens of the rebooted timeline. Or so it seems. Turns out the Liu Kang vs. Shang Tsung battle for the Hourglass spawned several timelines, and in many of them, each of the kombatants became Time Keepers.
• Spotlight-Stealing Squad: Played With. Liu Kang is the protagonist and hero of the series, but from Deadly Alliance onwards, he had fallen Out of Focus. Characters like Shujinko, Taven, Raiden & Cassie served as the protagonists up until the climax of 11 (where Raiden drove most of the plot forward), where he once again became the protagonist of the series.
• Stop Worshipping Me:
  • During the reveal of his godhood to Sindel in 1, he acknowledges that he is factually a god, and the creator of the current universe at that, but he doesn't consider himself a divinity to be worshipped, simply Earthrealm's protector. Similarly, when he asks for Sindel's help in saving Earthrealm, she wonders aloud if he is asking as her creator; Liu Kang responds by stating it as the request of a friend.
  • Anytime someone wonders if they should worship the being who rewrote the universe, he immediately shuts the notion down and presents himself as simply a demi-deity who wishes to collaborate with his mortal compatriots.
  • One intro with Tanya has her defiant that she will continue to worship Delia and Argus, with Liu Kang responding that he wouldn't have it any other way.
• Story-Breaker Power: Quite possibly the most powerful being in Mortal Kombat, he's able to defeat Kronika and is much stronger than Raiden. Shang Tsung (who at the moment was empowered by the souls of Nightwolf, Raiden, Fujin, Shao Kahn, Sindel and a Cetrion-empowered Kronika) has to wear Kronika's crown to even stand a chance at beating him.
• Swapped Roles: In previous timelines, Raiden was Earth's protector god and Liu Kang was Earth's Mortal Kombat champion. In the New Era, Raiden is Earth's champion and Liu Kang is the protector god.
• Time Abyss: He has existed since before the dawn of time, being one of the only few people to have come from the timeline before it. Hit home in the beginning of Chapter 4, when Geras appears to Liu Kang in his sanctum, Liu Kang mentions off-handedly it's been "eons" since they've last seen each other.
• Useless Accessory: After being turned into a Fire God, Liu Kang has Raiden's hat slung over his back, but never puts it on. On that note, when Liu Kang later encounters a now human Raiden, Raiden still has his own hat.
• Verbal Backpedaling: When Liu Kang is told that Kenshi's blinding was courtesy of a Tarkat-infected Mileena, he lets slip that he hoped the means would've been different this time. When Kenshi gets confused by what he meant by "this time", Liu apologizes for misspeaking to cover up the fact that he's aware of the previous timeline.
• Walking Shirtless Scene:
  • In 11, Fire God Liu Kang never wears a shirt, showing off his new glowing tattoos and ever-present muscles. His alternate costume as Earthrealm's champion also forgoes the shirt.
  • In 1, he does wear a shirt, but even then, he leaves it unbuttoned, showing off quite a bit of his torso. His Chapter 15 costume, should you choose him, also forgoes the shirt.
• Walking Spoiler: His existence not only spoiled the endgame of 11 but also his status by the end has enormous ramifications for the future of the MK universe going forward.
• The Watcher:
  • His role by the end of 11 and during the beginning stages of the New Era.
  • The Golden Ending of the main game of 11 with Kitana has her specifically push him into this position: guiding and respecting mankind's free will and not micromanaging them as Kronika did.
• What the Hell Are You?: In 1, he asks Omni-Man this question in a pre-match intro.
  Liu Kang: By the Elder Gods, what are you?
  Omni-Man: I'm something of a god myself.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Several characters during a clash call him out on his inactions when he could have aided them in their time of need. Liu Kang tells them it's not his job to fix everything nor does he want everyone to be dependent on him.
• Willfully Weak: After creating the new timeline, he surrendered his Titan of Time powers to exist as a mere demigod and guardian of Earthrealm, not wanting to succumb to the same temptations as Kronika and just enjoying the job more. Geras secretly safeguarded Liu Kang's power, and he is forced to re-assume them permanently to oppose Titan Shang Tsung.
• With Great Power Comes Great Insanity: The main reason why he gave up his Titan powers. He knew had he attempted to perfect his timeline, he would go mad and repeat the process until the timeline becomes what he wants. Because Kronika did the exact same thing, which led to the events of 11 until he puts an end to her madness, he decides to not abuse that power and let things flow naturally, and not let himself be consumed by the same insanity Kronika did.
  Sindel: You had power over all of creation, yet you gave it up.
  Liu Kang: Because I saw how it drove Kronika mad. I knew I would fare no better had I kept it.
• Your Days Are Numbered: The process of reclaiming his Titanhood does irreparable harm to himself, breaking his immortality, which means that someday he will inevitably die. Furthermore, the death of any Titan is stated to be absolutely permanent. This is severely downplayed however, by the fact that Liu Kang's lifespan will still stretch eons and he's largely unbothered by the realization of his sudden mortality beyond contemplating his eventual successor.

---